New Delhi:The Supreme Court on Friday minced no words in strongly criticising the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) about the untreated solid waste in the capital saying that 3,000 tonnes of untreated solid waste per day in Delhi may lead to a "public health emergency”. The apex court made it clear that it will ensure the implementation of the Solid Waste Management Rules in the national capital even at the risk of being called "unfair".
A bench led by Justice AS Oka and comprising Justice Augustine George Masih said the court is concerned regarding the poor implementation of the Solid Waste Management Rules in the capital. Slamming the MCD, the bench said the capital generates over 11,000 tonnes of solid waste every day, however, the daily capacity of processing plants made available by the corporation was only 8,073 tonnes.
The bench said, as per MCD’s affidavit, there is no possibility of creating treatment facilities even till 2027 to deal with 11,000 tonnes of solid waste, which is generated every day. Senior advocate Aparajita Singh, amicus curiae in the matter related to solid waste management, contended that this may lead to a public health emergency as there is data, both in Indian and foreign journals, that people are dying because of pollution in the country. “We agree with the amicus curiae that this will lead to a public health emergency," said the bench.